ICPAS Showcase Put Practical Focus on the Future

For the last four years, Edward J. Hannon, partner in charge of tax practice at Freeborn & Peters LLP in Chicago, Illinois, says the opportunity to attend the Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS) Annual Midwest Accounting and Finance Showcase has been nothing short of a "game changer."

The Showcase, Hannon says, is not only an opportunity to earn "a tremendous amount" of CPE hours and connect with ICPAS associates, but also an opportunity to gain real-world, practical knowledge affecting the CPA profession today. It offers firms and companies tangible business solutions and best practices to help propel profitability.

"There are always one or two sessions where I learn useful, realistic information on a topic that is important to me", Hannon said. "The sessions always offer real-world examples, as opposed to theoretical topics, and the technology sessions show you how to ensure you are future ready . . . how to get your hands around Cloud technology."

Hannon, who is also secretary of the board of directors for the ICPAS, was just one of many CPAs and financial professionals from the Midwest who descended on the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center last month for the ICPAS 32nd Annual Midwest Accounting and Finance Showcase.

This year's Showcase was designed to help CPAs and financial professionals answer a wide array of questions affecting their practice, including how to buy their own CPA practice; transfer their office's technology platform to the Cloud; and learn how the nation's now-solidified health care reform will impact businesses.

Hannon said learning about new methods of delivering CPE hours and how to specifically tailor that education to his practice is at the top of his "knowledge hob."

This year's Showcase featured two days of educational sessions offering up to 16 hours of CPE for $290. The program of study was designed to allow finance professionals to create a program of study that best suited their educational needs. Attendees were able to select CPE sessions from eight educational tracks

For more information, visit the ICPAS website. To get the latest news and updates on the Showcase, follow the ICPAS on Twitter at @IllinoisCPA and look for hashtag #ICPASShow.